Like the first book, The Tainted Cup, A Drop of Corruption was a brilliantly written mystery. The world is very complex and this gives an extra layer of complexity to the mystery itself. This book is very detailed but fast-paced to keep the reader hooked. I loved the ending in both of the books in the series because it is SO satisfying to see the mystery unfold.

The two main characters, Ana and Din, are so fun to follow. Ana has many eccentricities that are humorous and intriguing. She is a delightfully crude and blunt character. I also love Din’s sarcastic inner monologue, especially when dealing with Ana. I love their personality pairing of eccentric meets exasperated. Their banter will put a smile on your face! RJB also has a knack for creating so many side characters for these books and giving them unique personalities and struggles. A Drop of Corruption makes you care and invest in the unique world and its people so easily.

I am not typically a mystery person but these books blend mystery and fantasy seamlessly and masterfully. If you are a fan of either of these genres I would recommend this series! Book two was as amazing as book one and expanded the world even more. I cannot wait to see what book three has in store!

This was stunning! I enjoyed the first book, but this second book made me gasp more with the tugging of my emotions lol this was a mystery filled gothic fantasy. It was clever and witty. I especially loved the banter and the world that was built!

Book: A Drop of Corruption
Author: Robert Jackson Bennett
Rating: 4 Out of 5 Stars

I would like to thank the publisher, Del Rey, for sending me an ARC. This is the second book by this author that I have read. I enjoy how this is adult fantasy, but the writing is super easy to get into. While the world and the characters are complex, everything is presented in a way that is easy to follow. I do think I did enjoy this second book more than the first.

I am going to try to keep my review as spoiler-free as possible, but since this is the second book in a series, there may be spoilers for earlier books.

In this one, Din and Ana are back in action and this case may just push them to the breaking point. When a Treasury officer vanishes from a locked, heavily guarded room in Yarrowdale, Ana and her assistant Dinios Kol are called to investigate. What begins as an impossible disappearance soon turns into something far more sinister—a murder orchestrated by an adversary who seems to defy the laws of reality. With the Empire’s crucial research facility, the Shroud, at risk, Ana must unravel a mystery where her opponent stays one step ahead, moving through barriers as if they don’t exist and anticipating her every move. As the stakes escalate and the Empire’s magical power hangs in the balance, Din wonders if Ana has finally encountered a case she cannot solve.

I know I started my review out by saying this. The writing is super easy to get into and presents everything in a way that gives you what you need when you need it. Unlike a lot of high fantasy books, this one does not use the info dump. Instead, we are exposed to the world as the case unfolds. We are thrown right into the story with Din investigating a murder. He is not sure of what he is doing nor does he know what his boss, Ana, is going to through at him. All he knows is that he still has to pay off his father’s debts. Right away, we are thrown into the case and now have a murder to solve. Along the way, there are going to be new people, new bits of the world, and one wild ride.

I love what Din and Ana bring to the page. They are very much a Waston-Sherlock duo. We have Ana who is rather odd, a bit out there, but has a brilliant mind. Din is more grounded and doesn’t always understand what Ana wants and why. He just goes along with it. Din tells the story. He could give us an Ana who is strange and different, which he does. Yet, he does not undercut her brilliance and the fact that she is very good at what she does. He follows her orders, but the way that he tells us about her, we get to see that he does care for her. Now, this is not a romantic relationship at all. Rather it is one in which we see a co-worker admire the brilliance of their boss.

Now, the relationship is not perfect. Din still has his father’s debts hanging over his head, which is a big reason why he agreed to work with Ana in the first place. He is not going to stay with her forever. He sees him looking for other jobs. He also sleeps around to take his mind off of things. We also see him question Ana. Ana does expect a lot of Din. At times, it may not seem like she does care for his well-being. Now, this is not true. She is also very odd in her requests of him. She tells him to trust her and just do what she says. You can tell at times that he does not understand what she is doing. At the end of the day, both of them have a deep bond with each other.

Now, the mystery is re very good. They are difficult for the reader to solve. Now, I did have this one somewhat pieced together by the end of the book, but I did miss a lot of the finer details. When Ana gave us the big reveal, I was able to see, though, all of those little things that I missed along the way. To me, this is the mark of a well-done mystery. There was enough sprinkled throughout the story to give us what we needed, but, yet, there were still things that we had to show/tell at the end. I enjoyed it. I enjoyed all of the twists and turns along the way.

Overall, I did enjoy this one a lot. I had a great time being back in this world. I am excited to see what happens next.

This book comes out on April 1, 2025.

Youtube: https://youtu.be/4edqgxWAKW0

Din & Ana are the duo you never knew you needed!

Impossible to guess what is going to happen next. I do feel this lacked some of the emotion we got from the side characters from book 1 but Ana was feistier this go around and I thoroughly enjoyed this. Cant wait for book 3!

“For if these folk have their way, we shall return to nature primordial, and be as beasts, and all the world a savage garden, mindless and raving.”

REVIEW

The stakes have only gotten higher in this, A Drop of Corruption, sequel to last year’s The Tainted Cup!

Din and Ana have moved on to Yarrowdale to investigate a new murder and this one is as much of a doozy as the first. The twists are spinny, the turns are fast, and the roller coaster is all over the place. I just love what RJD does with his worlds—the worldbuilding is so rich and yet not difficult to understand. I love the further inclusion of the Leviathans in their book and how catastrophic they really can be. The inclusion of The Shroud was epic and captivating.

You know the game is afoot when an official disappears from their room without a trace—doors and windows all locked—and winds up torn to shreds in a river. The plot only thickens from there! The perp behind this murder and further destruction seems to be 10 steps ahead at every moment. The tension is high but the humor is still whip smart.

I am always impressed with the immersion of this world. The foreshadowing, the trial that leads the reader through the story. We think we’re headed one direction and then we are flipped on a dime along with Din.

Speaking of Din, we really got to go more in depth with his character and story. We get to see a vulnerable part of him and his indecisions. He has a good, albeit weird, thing going with Ana and it might end sooner than he’d like.

Overall, still a fun wild ride. I’m so flipping excited for book 3 it’s unreal. I’m absolutely loving the fact that people are discovering and loving RJB and hope this shines more light on his previous works!

Thank you NetGalley and DelRey for the early eArc!!

A Drop of Corruption is the second in Robert Jackson Bennett’s Sherlock Holme’s inspired fantasy series Shadows of the Leviathan. The first book – The Tainted Cup – introduced readers to engraver Dinios Kol, a man altered so that he has a perfect memory and his savant boss Ana Dolabra, who wears a blindfold to limit the amount of sensory information she has to process. That book introduced their imperial world, threatened by monsters that come from the sea but whose blood and viscera underpin a complex biological system of enhancements.
While readers last saw Din and Ana heading towards the imperial centre, A Drop of Corruption finds them beyond the edge of the Empire. Yarrowdale is important as a processing centre for leviathan bodies and so has a thriving imperial outpost but is not yet officially part of the Empire. Din and Ana have been sent to solve the mystery of a missing Treasury official, who disappeared from a guarded, second floor locked room with locked windows leaving only a pool of blood. The solution of this mystery just opens up further mysteries as the pair find themselves trying to outwit someone possibly cleverer than Ana.
If the homage to the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes in the first book in this series was not sufficient, Bennett provides even more direct lifts and allusions to those stories in the follow up. From his mechanical solution to the locked room mystery, to an adversary reminiscent of Moriarty, to the use of disguise and misdirection. But this is all in service of illuminating his fantasy world and many of the solutions hinge on the protagonist’s (and reader’s) understanding of the rules of that world.
Putting the Doctor Watson comparisons aside, Dinios Kol is a great guide to this world. Unhappy with his lot in life, saddled with debts accrued by his father, looking to find solace in physical contact, but also handy with a sword and an intuitive investigator in his own right. His personal arc is in understanding the purpose of a functioning justice system to the continued health of the Empire. And it is in this facet – the exploration of power and influence and corruption, that this series transcends its setting and genre trappings.
Once again, Bennett uses tried and tested crime fiction tropes to dig deep into interesting aspects of the world that he has created. In the two books so far he has kept his main characters on the periphery of the Empire. Given how much more of this world there is to explore and the flexibility of this approach, more adventures of Din and Ana are assured and will be welcome.

A captivating sequel that seamlessly fits into the world of Ana and Din. Like the first book, this is a slow-paced mystery that takes time to settle into. The author carefully weaves a web of information, ensuring that every detail eventually ties together—but the journey can feel sluggish at times.

There’s a long stretch where the plot lingers, allowing us to absorb the setting and explore the motivations of different characters. While this adds depth to the world, it also makes the pacing feel stagnant in places. That said, I enjoyed the intricate plotting and the vast array of characters, each adding something unique to the story. The world itself is rich with fascinating elements, and though the conclusion wasn’t entirely satisfying, finishing the book still felt worthwhile.

I preferred the first installment, but this was still an engaging read. If you don’t mind a slow burn, it’s worth the journey.

What a fantastic addition to the Shadow of Leviathan series!! I really enjoyed this one and elaboration on the fantasy world within a new murder mystery (that truly kept you guessing!). One of my favorite parts of the book was Din’s struggles of finding a worthy endeavor in a corrupt system and the close look at those in power. The epilogue at the end was perfect. I highly recommend this book.

I loved book 1 in this series and was very excited to see that book 2 was coming out so soon.

This sequel did not disappoint. Is it long? Yes. It is needed for the plot? I think so.

Din and Ana are out on another major case where someone from the Empire has been murdered under very suspicious circumstances. There is also a dead king in an empire that was supposed to become part of the empire.

With perfect storytelling, Bennett spins this tale while building another piece of the world we are getting with this series. The added characters are well written and I loved this mystery.

𝗠𝗬 𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦:

☆ 1000/10.
☆ Infinite 5 stars
☆ Perfection
☆ Absolutely no notes.
☆ Lives completely rent free in my head and I love it.
☆ Utterly Obsessed.
☆ I will take no criticism of this book
☆ Permanent auto-buy author
☆ I absolutely need to read his back-log.

Seriously.. this man's writing is on a whole 'nother level and I'm addicted to it.


𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗟𝗗 𝗕𝗨𝗜𝗟𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚: RJB drops you right back into his fascinating fantasy world of dangerous plant life, human augmentation, and deadly leviathans. He remained incredibly consistent with the world he built in 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘊𝘶𝘱, while still expanding on not just the Empire, but one of the neighboring regions its trying to absorb.

𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: Ana is still a fricken chaos queen and I love her so damn much. Din continued to grow, keeping his personal character arc intriguing to follow. Once again, we were given colorful side characters that fully brought this region to life, especially with the introduction of Malo. She played off Din beautifully, almost taking on the roll of Din's foil - highlighting his flaws and forcing him to learn and grow out of them. She was a splendid addition to the murder mystery solving crew.

𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗧: I honestly stopped trying to guess where RJB was taking us cuz lord I was wrong each time. This man is phenomenal with red herrings and subtle foreshadowing. Fast past, super addictive to read

𝗩𝗜𝗕𝗘𝗦: Immaculate. No notes.

𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: ★★★★★ x ∞

*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐈𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄:
☆ Sherlock and Watson
☆ Neurodivergents with “superpowers”
☆ Murder Mystery
☆ High Fantasy
☆ Politcal Intrigue
☆ If the Leviathans don't kill you, then the plants might, and if they don't, then the people will.

In the second installment of the fantasy series following Ana Dolabra and her assistant Dinios Kol, the pair travel to the remote Yarrowdale to investigate the death of one of the Empire’s treasury officers. What starts out as a murder case leads to a much more complicated and intricate plot that could topple the stability of the Empire.

I hesitate to go into too many details because this book is just so full of twists and turns that I don’t want to spoil any surprises. The author has created a complicated and detailed world for the reader to enjoy. Not only is the world building incredibly creative, but the plot itself is so involved that you won’t want to put the book down. The main characters, Ana and Din, are an unexpected, quirky duo that complement each other’s strengths. Their development throughout as both individuals and a team is very well done.

I would suggest reading the first book in the series (The Tainted Cup) to understand the world the story is operating in, but it’s not 100% necessary. This story has creativity, mystery, and heart. Highly recommend this book!

Got a few chapters in, and am just not feeling it. Some of it is just me, and some of it is the result of having lost the momentum of the first book. May try again later.

A Drop of Corruption is the sequel to Robert Jackson Bennett’s spectacular epic fantasy/murder mystery The Tainted Cup. Assistant investigator Din and his brilliant but mercurial boss Ana are called in to the fringes of the Empire—Yarrowdale where its integration into the Empire is not sitting well with the local monarchy. A Treasury officer has disappeared in impossible circumstances and only pieces of him are found days later. There, they find a hotbed of increasingly daring smugglers, a petty kingdom squeezing the Empire for more, and a mysterious adversary who seems to match Ana in brilliance and foresight.

This was a stunning sequel, and I loved it just as much as I did the first book. Robert Jackson Bennett once again manages to deliver a murder mystery that is twisty and surprising. From the locked door mystery to the intriguing court politics to the unnerving criminal mastermind, everything felt fresh and different even as a second installment.

While the visuals may not be as visceral, it successfully carries over the dark and bleak atmospheric and evocatively gritty vibe. And even without the threat of leviathans breaching the Empire’s walls hanging over the book, it still manages to make their presence felt in the Shroud, an off-coast facility where the bodies of leviathans are taken and harvested to produce the augmentation elixirs and innovations vital to the Empire’s fight against these titan (hence the importance of Yarrowdale to the Empire’s survival).

Continuing their Watson-and-Holmes dynamic, Din is now a fully fledged assistant investigator and is growing into his own and managing Ana. However, he is still struggling with his own wants and desires over duty and his family’s debts. I actually really liked how much of a bisexual mess he was and I particularly enjoyed the hilarious judgement coming from Ana. We also get more hints about Ana as she slowly reveals her secrets to Din. They’re a duo I would keep reading more of, and I would also appreciate the return of a certain Captain from the first book.

A Drop of Corruption delivers another stunner of an epic fantasy murder mystery.

*Thank you to Random House Publishing Group for the eARC via NetGalley

What a great sequel to such a bizarre and intriguing world. I liked this better than the first one, and loved seeing the character development. The relationship between Din and Ana grew substantially and changed in a beautiful way. Don’t get me wrong, he still finds her to be utterly mad and is regularly still disgusted by her habits, but there’s more awe and respect built throughout this super intense investigation. The side characters were wonderful and weird, I loved learning so much about such a drastically different part of this world. The amount of new information about the intricacies of part of the processes required to maintain the Empire was staggering and much appreciated. The theme of corruption within autocracies was brilliant during such a fragile time in our own global politics. My only minor complaint is that I am desperate to confirm or deny a theory about the leviathans and now have to wait for another book while slowly being driven as mad as Ana, great job to Bennett for keeping me hooked on this world. Thanks to NetGalley for providing this!

Thank you Robert Jackson Bennett, NetGalley and Del Rey for this ARC

A Drop of Corruption is the second book in the Shadow of the Leviathan trilogy (at the moment), which follows Ana Dolabra, a brilliant - if a bit weird- investigator, and her assistant, Dinios Kol. The world created by Robert Jackson Bennett is expanded to perfection, Din and Ana’s characters become even more three dimensional (if that is even possible).

Technicalities aside (like two grammatical mistakes and a name switcheroo), I’m still wiping away tears. The journey that Bennett took me was trilling, but that ending? It was beautiful, sweet and golden.

A Drop of Corruption is a wonderful return to the world of Ana, Din, the leviathans and everything that comes with them. We are dropped into the city of Yarrow, a city not yet part of the Empire of Khanum but absolutely vital to its inner workings through the presence of The Shroud off the coast.
As expected, one seemingly impossible murder leads to a string of revelations about the killer and their motives, and the characters turn to the task of trying to stop the next move from being made.
This installment of the series brings more of a thriller vibe to it rather than a straight murder mystery, and brings more action, drama and suspense into the quest to find and stop the murderer. We learn more about the characters and in particular, we discover a little bit more about the mystery of Ana herself. Each of the side characters are intricately characterised with their own voices and agendas, and add extra layers to the progression of solving the murders.
We thoroughly enjoyed this latest book in the series and highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for more Ana and Din mystery and chaos.

First I'd like to thank NetGalley for allowing me to read the ARC ahead of release!
While I felt like quite some time past between events in the series it all comes back with a bang! A new mystery to solve and disasters to avoid and prevent! Some new characters which I really enjoyed and more in-depth look at the various jobs and advances of the empire.
My favorite part is deep in the book, it feels almost like a possession sequence or characters talking through another. That whole 2 or so chapters had me absolutely riveted to the page.
I loved the growth between our two main characters and the world is still amazing. Can't wait for the official release!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5 STARS for Drop of Corruption – a brilliant fantasy-mystery from the author of The Tainted Cup! If you crave a 🕵️‍♂️ Sherlock + Watson style adventure with witty protagonists set in a richly developed fantasy empire, be sure to grab a copy when this book publishes on April 1, 2025!

📖 A QUICK 411:
Dinios Kol serves the Iudex, the Empire’s institution of justice, with a mind altered to forget nothing. He assists Ana Dolabra, a brilliant investigator who lives blindfolded to shield her mind from the chaos of the world. He observes and remembers; she analyzes and uncovers hidden truths. Together, they bring justice to the Empire. ⚖️🔍

⭐ ALL THE STARS FOR:
- The entertaining banter between Ana and Din 😂
- Every well-placed detail is relevant to the story 🎯
- Fast-paced action + a criminal mastermind 🏃‍♂️💨
- Amazing side characters— don't underestimate anyone! 😲
- A satisfying ending with all the loose ends tied up 🎀

I especially love when authors leverage fantasy to illustrate real-world issues... so 🎩 HATS OFF to Robert Jackson Bennett who confirms this in his Author's Note.

“Our headlines are dominated by regimes with one nigh-all-powerful man at the top making any number of terrible choices, and then—to the bafflement of the entire globe—doubling down on them, thus inflicting massive suffering on his people. It seems the talents that make a man capable of navigating palace intrigue until he wins the throne generally don’t coexist with the talents required for—or even a passing interest in—good governance.”

🔥 FAVORITE QUOTES:
🗡️ “You know, you are not a stupid person, Din.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” I said, pleased.
“Or, rather, not an unusually stupid person.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” I said, far less pleased.

🗡️ “This work can never satisfy, Din, for it can never finish. The dead cannot be restored. Vice and bribery will never be totally banished from the cantons. And the drop of corruption that lies within every society shall always persist. The duty of the Iudex is not to boldly vanquish it but to manage it.”

Thank you to NetGalley, Robert Jackson Bennett, Random House Publishing Group - Del Rey, and Random House Worlds, Inklore | Del Rey for the advance reader copy in exchange for my honest review!

I love this series and I'm so excited for there to be more. I enjoyed learning more about Ana's back story and Din's motivations and about the leviathons and how their blood is used, and more about a new aspect of this incredibly unique world. I took a long time to read this book, but I was still liking it the whole time. My biggest disappointment was that I figured out a lot of mystery before Ana did, and so I lost the big shock value of the final moment. But I still loved it and can't wait for the next book.

Din and Ana are back!!!

I swear RJB keeps getting better. He blends genres perfectly and I am reeling from some of the revelations at the end of this book. This is an extremely well crafted mystery with the perfect amount of intrigue, politics, fantasy, and horror. I always appreciate how Bennett drops a million threads for the reader to speculate on.

Can't wait to see how some of the implications from book 2 continue in book 3. Now... I wait lol.